Chapter 250: Chapter 249: Touching the Aura of a Child Prodigy Chapter 250: Chapter 249: Touching the Aura of a Child Prodigy After dinner, the Jiang family members all sat on stools, patting their bellies, none showing any inclination to get up and wash the dishes.
Zhang Guihua, seeing her daughter-in-law’s lack of initiative, frowned unhappily and ordered, “Eldest daughter-in-law, go tidy up, and make sure the dishes are clean.”
Su Wanyu agreed briskly aloud, yet she sighed inwardly.
Alas, having two younger sisters back at their mother’s home was no good; there was nobody left to do the chores.
Fortunately, Jiang Mianmian was very proactive and helped clear the table.
Jiang Changhai couldn’t bear to let his wife do the dishes alone in the kitchen, so he followed her and they washed together.
If this had happened in the past, the old lady would have been angrily lecturing Changhai for doing “woman’s work,” scolding him for not being man enough, for letting his wife walk all over him, and whatever other harsh words came to mind.
But over the years, she had seen it all; feeling good today, she turned a blind eye and didn’t bother with the pair who were out of step with tradition.
On a rare sunny winter day, Jiang Mianmian took a book outside and sat in the yard, lazily basking in the sun.
“San Ya, you’ve been working hard reading; Granny has made you a bowl of brown sugar water. Drink the sugar water before you continue reading,” Zhang Guihua said as she brought over the sweet drink.
“Uh, thank you, Granny.”
Jiang Mianmian scratched her head, embarrassed to admit she had brought the book outside just to use it as a sunshade.
However, now that she saw the brown sugar water her granny had specially prepared for her, she felt compelled to start reciting her lessons and ancient poems.
Jiang Zheng was reciting her book when suddenly, she heard a commotion at the gate; she looked up and saw a group of people entering.
“Oh my, Elder Sister Zhang, is this the Little Prodigy you were talking about? This child is so attractive—fair and clean, just looks so clever.”
A woman Jiang Mianmian didn’t recognize, with a dark-skinned little boy in tow, was sizing her up.
A village auntie chuckled, “I didn’t lie to you, did I? This child is so clever. From a young age, she’s known to help her parents with chores and could recite many poems even before starting school.”
The pride in her voice suggested that Jiang Mianmian was her own child.
“Ah, everyone’s here, come on in and take a seat.”
Hearing the noise, Zhang Guihua quickly went to welcome the visitors and instructed Su Wanyu to make two pots of tea.
An old lady from the village smiled and said, “Elder Sister Zhang, don’t trouble yourself; we came by just to see San Ya and wanted our children to bask in the Little Prodigy’s aura.”
The visitors to the Jiang Family were all villagers who had talked about the family’s Little Prodigy during their New Year’s relative visits.
Parents who had taken their children to visit relatives, upon hearing the stories, all wanted to bring their kids to imbibe the prodigy’s essence.
Upon hearing this, a smile instantly curled the corners of Guihua’s mouth: “Now that you’re here, you must at least have a cup of tea before you leave.”
She ushered them into the house and brought out peanuts and sunflower seeds to treat them and even handed out some loose candy to the children, one piece each.
Seeing this, adults beamed with delight, feeling that the Jiang family members really knew how to host, even generously offering candy to the children; their words of praise flowed non-stop.
“Sister-in-law, you’re truly blessed to have such a sensible and literate granddaughter; your good days are yet to come,” praised one.
“Indeed, such a young child earning money for the family; just imagine how much more she will accomplish as she grows up,” said another.
As people took turns praising Jiang Mianmian and flattering her, Zhang Guihua was being complimented so much she nearly lost all sense of direction.